Shadow
by Mrs.Cullen21
Summary: Being Lucas Scotts sister wasn't what it was cracked up to be. Lilly had spent 17 years trying desperately to get out of his shadow that followed her everywhere. Review please!
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I don't own One Tree Hill.

---

This was her spot, her sanctuary. Right here at the docks behind her Uncle Dans pool house, her feet barely skimming the top of the ocean, her hair blowing in the night-time breeze. This was her sanctuary. She felt so small here, the sky so vast above her. She would sneak out of her house in the middle of the night and come here, counting the stars above her while her problems faded away. After an hour so of just sitting here, she'd walk back home and crawl through the window to her room. Her mom had not figured her out yet, and if she had, she hadn't said anything. Her mom was more concerned being a grandma to Lucas's kids than anything else anyways. Lilly's whereabouts didn't much concern her.

Being Lucas Scotts kid sister wasn't what everyone thought it was. Lilly had lived the past seventeen years trying desperately to get outside of his shadow that followed her. Everywhere she went people just automatically assumed she and Lucas were exactly alike, always asking her if she played basketball. Well, she didn't play basketball, nor would she ever. All because of the simple fact that basketball was Lucas's life and not hers. Lilly resented Lucas because of the shadow he cast over her. As long as she lived in this small town, she would only be known for being Lucas Scott's kid sister. It didn't matter how many of her photographs made the front page of her school newspaper, and the towns, or how many goals she scored on the soccer field. To them, she would always be the less important kid sister.

But, Lilly didn't care what other people thought. They could assume anything they wanted to about her. She couldn't care less. She did things her way, and not Lucas's, and certainly not her mother Karens way. Karen never said anything straight up, but Lilly knew it was there. The resentment toward her for not turning out just the way Lucas had. She could feel the resentment there, brewing, when Lilly was yelled at for being out past curfew, for not calling and letting Karen know where she was, for not having the grades, or the literature talent. Lilly knew.

She had one more year, and she was gone. One more year, and she could get away from Lucas Scott and everything that came with him. She could go on to just be Lilly Scott, love-child of Keith Scott and Karen Roe. One more year, and everything would change.

"Lilly?"

She turned when she heard the frantic voice yell her name, spotting Lucas running toward her. _Great,_ She thought,_ Just who I wanted to see._ She dipped her toes in the water once more and stood up, facing him. "Hey, Luke. What's up?"

"What's up?" He asked her, incredulously, when he caught up with her. "We've been searching for you for the past half hour. What are you doing out here?"

And now her spot, her sanctuary, was gone. Perfect. "Just thinking is all. I'm sorry I worried you." Lilly started to wake back to shore, Lucas right behind her.

"What are you thinking about?" He asked, trying to be sneaky.

There he was, trying to be the big brother. He was always trying to be her friend, her confidante. She wouldn't let him in, though no matter how many tries he made. "Nothing spectacular."

"Oh." He said, quietly from behind her.

"Shouldn't you be at home with your kids?"

Lucas had three kids and one on the way with his wife, Peyton. Peyton was awesome, though Lilly had no idea why she picked Lucas of all people to spend the rest of her life with. Peyton owned a record label that Lilly worked as a receptionist at. She loved it there.

"Mom called me when she couldn't find you. We looked everywhere." Lucas answered as they climbed into his black SUV.

We was him and Andy, her step-dad. Andy was fairly okay. He sided with Karen ninety-percent of the time, but she was his wife so that was kind of expected. He taught her how to read and write when she was five, and when Karen was working late he let her have ice-cream for dinner. "Huh." Was all Lilly said.

Lucas sighed that long, drawn out sigh that let Lilly know she was in trouble. "You shouldn't have sneaked out like that, Lil. You scared Mom to death."

"You're not my father, Lucas so could you save us the speech?" Lilly said as Lucas pulled up to his old house, where he and Peyton had moved out of when Sawyer was born.

Lilly stepped out the car, waving a small goodbye and shutting the car door behind herself. When she opened the front door, she heard his car drive off. After closing the front door quietly, Lilly slipped off her shoes and started for her bedroom.

"Where do you think you're going?" Her mother asked from the kitchen, staring Lilly down.

"To sleep." Lilly called back as she stepped into her room, laying down on her bed for the moment of peace she had before Karen stormed in.

"When did you think you had the right to leave the house in the middle of the night, without telling me where you were going or even asking permission?" Karen screamed at her, her arms flying through the air. "You are seventeen years old, young lady! You do not need to go gallivanting through town at this time of night!"

"I was not gallivanting through town, Mom." Lilly said, calmly, the way she knew irritated Karen to no end. "I was at the docks by Uncle Dans pool house. I wasn't getting into any trouble. No biggie."

"No biggie? For christs sake, Lilly! You could've been killed, or kidnapped, or raped-"

"In this town?"

"Lilly Roe-Scott! You are grounded. For two weeks. No phone, no tv, no internet. No car. Nothing."

"Mom! Come on, it won't happen again, no big deal. Seriously."

"Want to make it three?"

Lilly rolled her eyes, lying back down on the bed. "Sorry." Karen sighed, and stormed out the room. Lilly, rolling over to her side, fell asleep.

--

"Mom?" Lilly said as she stumbled out of her room to eat some breakfast before going to school. "Can I please call Jamie to come pick me up since I don't have my car? I really don't want to ride the bus."

Karen didn't turn around from the sink. "Should've thought of that before you snuck out."

Lilly groaned, grabbed a pop-tart and walked out of the door, before peeking her head back in and saying, "Oh, Mom, I almost forgot, I'm going to school now."

"Lilly Roe-!" Lilly didn't hear the end of it as she slammed the door shut behind her. She wasn't going to ride the bus; Lilly would just walk over to Jamies and catch a ride. Technically Jamie was her second-cousin. But, to keep things simple they just said they were cousins and Lilly called Nathan and Haley, "Uncle" and "Aunt" respectively. They were more Uncle and Aunt than cousins anyways.

Jamie was Lilly's best friend. After Karen, Andy and Lilly moved back from traveling the world when they were seven, Lilly and Jamie spent every waking second together. He was the only one who understood how much she hated being Lucas Scotts kid sister.

Jamie was just walking outside when Lilly walked up. "Hey Jamie."

Jamie turned, surprised to see her. "Hey! What are you doing? You get in trouble for last night?"

Lilly looked at him, puzzled.

"Aunt Karen called, asking if we'd seen you."

"Oh, right. Were you the one to tell her to tell Lucas I was at the docks?"

"Nope. That was all Lucas."

"Even better. Hey, you want to give me a ride to school? My car was taken away."

"Of course it was," he said, chuckling. "Hop in. You owe me though."

--

Hey guys! This is kind of a spur of the moment thing. I don't really know where I'm going with this, but I just wanted a look at how Lilly's life would be as Lucas's sister. Suggestions are always welcome, as are reviews! :] Thanks!


	2. Harsh

Disclaimer: I do not own One Tree Hill.

___

The bell rang as Lilly walked through the door of Clothes Over Bros, her Aunt Brooke's clothing store. Aunt Brooke was her favorite. She didn't compare Lilly to Lucas and often tried to make her the opposite. She was fun, even after having two kids and being married. Plus, she gave Lilly a discount on all the clothing there and even gave her stuff that wasn't in stores yet, which of course made all the girls at school jealous.

"Lillykins!" Brooke called from behind the counter, setting down the clothes she was folding and walking over to give Lilly a hug. "I assume they found you last night?"

Lilly laughed, surprised her mother had called so many people. "Yupp, unfortunately they did. I'm not even supposed to be here, but Mom's at work, so I figure she'll never know."

After Brooke took Karen's spot, Karen opened a bookstore a couple blocks down. Lilly tried to avoid the place as much as possible.

"How much trouble did you get in?" Brooke asked as they sat down on the couch.

"Grounded for two weeks. No phone, no friends, no life, yada yada yada. You know, the usual." Lilly shrugged.

"Well, that sucks. How are you going to get a boyfriend if you're grounded?"

"I didn't have a boyfriend before I got grounded, Aunt Brooke. None of the guys at school like me like that anyways."

"Oh, nonsense!" Brooke chided her. "When you get ungrounded, come see me and I will tell you everything you need to know about getting a boyfriend. But on one condition."

"What?"

"You don't tell Lucas, or Nathan for that matter. Alright?"

Lilly laughed. "Like telling Lucas something would be a problem."

Brooke made a sad face. "Look, Lillykins, I know life as Lucas Scott's sister isn't so magnificent, but just give him a chance? It's not his fault…"

"I know. But does he have to be so freaking perfect? God, Mom can barely stand having me and not Lucas."

"Hey, you want to know something? I grew up without a Mom, and so did Peyton. Only, I didn't have a mom because my mom chose not to be there. Peyton's didn't. I would kill to have had Karen for a mother back then. My mom never even wanted me."

"It's not like my mom wants me, she just wants another Lucas."

"That's not true, Lillykins and you know it."

"Do I? Lucas would never sneak out of the house, let alone hang out at Uncle Dans! Lucas would never get an F on an essay, or get detention for sshing a teacher! Lucas, Lucas Lucas!" Lilly exclaimed, her arms flying up in the air.

"But your mother cares enough to yell at you for it. She does this because she cares about you."Brooke said, placing an arm on Lilly's shoulder. "Karen just doesn't want you to turn out to be a spoiled rotten brat."

Lilly nodded. She knew Brookes heart was in the right place, trying to convince her otherwise and all, but somehow deep down, Lilly still felt as if her mother wished for another Lucas. Maybe Brooke is right, Lilly thought to herself, maybe I'm just paranoid.

--

Karen got home right as Lilly was eating her dinner. Karen often worked late, leaving Lilly to make her own dinner. Lilly didn't mind, though, she got to pick her own food rather than shove whatever her mother was forcing her to eat down her throat. Being alone was easier for Lilly anyways.

"Hi Mom," Lilly said as Karen walked into the kitchen. "How was work?"

"Hi Lilly, work was fine. How was school? Get anymore detention slips?"

Lilly rolled her eyes as her mother sat down across from her at the kitchen table. "No, but I got close."

Karen sighed. Lilly had made a game out of it. How long to get her mother to make that long, drawn out sigh. Her record was without even saying a word. Though, Karen never sighed when she was talking to Lucas. Funny, Lilly thought to herself. "Do you have any homework?"

"None that I want to do." Lilly replied, stabbing her hot dog with her fork.

"Lilly."

"Fine, I'll do it when I get done eating. Happy?"

"Joyous. Where's Andy?"

Lilly shrugged. "Probably at a pool house getting drunk with another woman."

"Lilly Roe-Scott!"

Lilly's hands shot up in the air as she tried really hard not to laugh. "It was a joke! I'm sorry! I was only kidding, sheesh."

And then Karen sighed again. Lilly slyly smiled to herself. Not bad, she thought. She finished eating the rest of her hot dog, putting her plate in the sink and turning the water on to wash off the ketchup on the plate.

"Have you thought about what you've done? Has grounding done anything for you?"

"Yes, Mother it has," Lilly answered. "It has made me for the first time in my life very appreciative of living in a small town where I can walk everywhere."

"Jesus, Lilly. Do you have to be so sarcastic all the time? Can't you for once-"

"Act like Lucas?" Lilly finished for her. She turned around, her arms propped up against the countertop behind her, looking her mother in the eye. "Nope, sorry, can't do."

Karen didn't say anything as Lilly walked to her room.

--

"She didn't even say anything, Jamie." Lilly said as she sat in the passenger seat of Jamie's Pontiac G6 coupe. "Not a word. It was wonderful."

Jamie turned the wheel after finding the perfect parking space, putting his car in park and turning off the ignition. "Don't you think you were a little harsh?"

Lilly made a face. "Harsh?"

"Yeah, I mean, you did sneak out of the house."

God, this kid is too much like Haley, Lilly thought quietly as she walked into school next to him. "But that's not the point."

"Then what is? You can't always expect that there won't be consequences to your actions, Lil. Even the kids with parents who don't compare them know that." Jamie said as they opened their lockers. Having the same last name meant being locker neighbors.

"Whatever, Jamie. I just thought you'd be on my side." Lilly shoved her backpack into her locker and stormed off. Turning the corner, she opened the bathroom door. Jesus, everyone was freaking against her! Jamie was her best friend and here he was telling her she was wrong. Well, she wasn't. And she was damn tired of everyone thinking she was. Looking at her watch, she resolved to not talk to him until she was done being pissed. Which, at this point, would be awhile. She opened the door and rounded the corner. Well, she was about to round the corner when she walked straight into someone.

"Oumf." She muttered as she fell backwards. Her arms flew out to stop her from falling and she was sure she was going to face-plant right in front of everyone, but two strong arms caught her before she did.

Straightening herself, she looked at him. His hair was long and dark, and looked like it hadn't been washed in a week. His eyes were darker than his hair, and hidden behind his curly locks. He was strong, his shirt showing off just enough to make Lilly want to see him without it. "Hi, um, I'm sorry. I didn't see you.."

"That's alright. Don't worry about it." He said before turning around and leaving.

Lilly turned, watching him walk away. She was a little taken aback. That's alright? Don't worry about it? And then he just walked off? He wouldn't even let her flirt with him a little? Damn, Brooke's not gonna be proud about this.

--

Reviews, please! Thank you!


	3. The Mysterious Stranger

Hi! You guys are amazing, I love you. Keep reviewing please!!

Lilly is supposed to sound a little spoiled. I'm writing her that way. She is a teenager so she's not completely rational. Lilly has just grown up hearing about how good he was, from other people, and felt as if she could never top that. Lilly just wants to get away from that and be her own person. She could on her own if she wanted to, but then I have no story and that would be no fun. :] And I just wanted to clear something up, Haley does still teach at Tree Hill High, I just haven't wrote a scene for it yet, but I promise one will come. Okay?

Anywho, if you have any suggestions, ideas, questions, yada yada yada The green button is a great way to get a hold of me!

Disclaimer: I do not own One Tree Hill no matter how many times I wish upon a star I did.

___

Lilly picked up the framed photo that had been sitting on top of her dresser since before she could remember. Studying it, she traced her finger along the lines of his face. Her mother, and many other people who knew him said she looked just like him. She had his eyes, and smile, and just a little of his personality. She didn't know though. He was her father, and he had died before she was born. Her mom told her it was a car accident. She often wondered about him, who he was, or what he was like. Did he like the same things she did? Lilly couldn't say she exactly _missed_ him. How do you miss someone you never knew? Though, Lilly did often wish she had known him so she could miss him just a little.

"Lilly!" She heard Karen call. "Jamie's here!"

Lilly set the picture down, taking her bag and placing the strap around her shoulder as she walked out the door. She waved a small goodbye to her mom and walked out the door, sitting down in the passenger seat of Jamie's car and immediately turning the radio station to her personal favorite.

"Lilly! Geez! I don't want to listen to this crap!" Jamie exclaimed, pulling out of her driveway.

"On the contrary, Theory of a Deadman is not crap, thank you."

"It is, too. I am not listening." He turned the station back to his favorite. "And since I am driving, I get to pick."

Lilly groaned. "Perfect. I hate Eminem."

"So, listen, about yesterday, I'm sorry I made you mad." He started. "But, have you ever considered that maybe Karen doesn't want you to be Lucas? That maybe you're overreacting."

"I'm not overreacting." She countered, sending a text message on her phone. "You don't see the looks she gives me, or how excited she is when Lucas calls. It's insane. She's never that excited to hear from me."

"Maybe it's because you live with her." He reminded her. "And you're forgetting that Lucas wasn't perfect as a teenager. Remember the story Aunt Brooke told of getting him drunk and him getting a tattoo? Or the pregnancy scare?"

"I don't know. I just sometimes feel like they would be more happier, without me."

"You know that's not true."

"Do I? Do you know that when Lucas leaves after every visit, Mom tells him exactly how much she loves him and how proud she is of him? She's never once told me how proud she is. Not once. Not when my picture was published on the school newspaper, let alone the front page of the town's newspaper, not when I scored the game-winning goal in the State Championship last year, or when I got the Tree Hill High Soccer spirit award, or the Tree Hill Photography award. She just smiles. She didn't even come to my soccer banquet last year. She was too busy with the store."

Jamie looked at her, feeling a bit of pity and an incredible desire to change the subject. "Are you coming to the family picnic on Saturday?"

Lilly smiled, amused by his subject change knowing how uncomfortable he felt. "Only if you're there."

----

Lilly had to work right after school, so Jamie dropped her off at Tric, and she walked in. She had her homework to do in case things got boring, and a book to read also.

Lilly loved the label. She loved working there, being there amidst new bands getting a promise of their future. The label was also the location of most of her photography projects for school as well. There was so much there to capture; Lilly never ran out of subjects for her photography.

Photography was to Lilly as sketching and drawing was to Peyton. When she saw a building, she didn't just see a building. She immediately picked out different angles to make the building look prettier, more artsy, taller, anything. She was good at Photography. The challenge it gave you to capture a subject at exactly the perfect moment. The challenge to capture the emotion she was trying to project within the subject she was shooting.

Lilly had a desk right outside the door to Peyton's office where she worked as a receptionist. Lilly set her bag on her chair and walked into Peyton's office to let her know she was here. Peyton was on the phone when Lilly walked in, rubbing her stomach unconsciously, smiling at whomever she was talking to. Lilly walked over, sitting down on the seat usually reserved for clients. Lilly turned a photo that was sitting at Peyton's desk around. It was a photo of Lucas, and their three kids-Sawyer, who was eleven, Keith, who was eight, and Quentin who was six. When they found out Peyton was pregnant again, Lucas didn't want to know the sex of the baby, but Peyton did. Peyton told Lilly that it was a girl, and had also stashed some of the nursery items at Brooke's and some at Lilly's house in their extra bedroom.

"Hey, Lil" Peyton said, pulling Lilly out her thoughts. "How was school?"

Lilly shrugged. "School was school. Same ol', same ol'."

"You and Sawyer are exactly the same. Everytime-School was fine, nothing happened. Can't you say anything else?" Peyton huffed, sitting down at her seat.

Lilly chuckled, playing with her ring on her finger. "Something happened yesterday."

"What? Tell me! Please, I've been dying for some gossip outside of this place."

"I walked right into this guy, right?" Lilly said, telling her the story of her rundown with The Mysterious Stranger, which had become his name. Lilly had looked for him today, to flirt with him a little, but she hadn't seen him anywhere.

"The guy just walked off?" Peyton said after Lilly had finished. "You should've followed him."

"No, that would've been awkward. I looked for him at school today but that didn't help."

Peyton looked at her watch, jumping up when she did. "Well I would love to stay and chat about this. But I have a new guy coming in to show off his stuff. He's some acoustic guitar guy that Haley discovered somewhere. Actually, I'm pretty sure he goes to your school. Maybe he knows the Mysterious Stranger."

Lilly shrugged. "Maybe, who knows. I'll go sit outside and wait for him. Do you want me to send him right in, or make him wait?"

"Eh, make him wait. He's just a high school kid."

Lilly laughed as she walked out of the door.

--

Lilly was on the computer, photo-shopping one of her photos when she heard someone grunt. Her mouth fell open when she looked up, seeing The Mysterious Stranger standing right in front of her. What was he doing here? She fumbled for words, trying to compose herself. "Uh…Can I help you?"

"Yes," He said in his dark, velvety voice. "I'm Carter Smith. I'm here for a meeting I have with Peyton Scott. I'm supposed to talk to her about a demo."

_He _ was the kid from her school? Great, Lilly thought, now it would really be awkward. "Oh, uh, okay. Um, well, Peyton is not ready for you yet so you can have a seat and I'll call you when she's ready."

He nodded, sitting down as Lilly picked up the office phone, pressing the button to Peyton's office. "Peyton? Yeah, Carter Smith is here. Uh-huh. Got it."

"I'm guessing you weren't expecting me." Carter said from his spot across from Lilly's desk after she hung up the phone.

"Uh, not really, no." She answered, typing something on the computer.

He nodded, his lips turning slightly upward at the end. Lilly couldn't tell if this was supposed to be a smile, but she would take what she could get. "How did you come to work at the label? You interested in music or something?"

"Peyton is my sister-in-law." Lilly answered.

He nodded, again, not saying anything. They were quiet the rest of the time until Peyton stepped out and told him to come inside. Lilly waited a couple of minutes before standing up and tip-toeing to the door, being careful not to make it squeak when she opened it. She saw him sitting on the couch across from Peyton. He had his guitar in his arms, getting ready to play. They talked a second more and then he started to play. And he was good. Like, really good. He was indie, different than what Lilly usually listened to, but she liked him just the same.

All of this just made Lilly want to talk to him more.

____

Okay what do you think? You think this kids gonna be everything Lilly wants him to be? Or the opposite? Ideas are welcome and Reviews are even more welcome!

I went ahead and made Lilly not know that Dan killed Keith. She'll found out, though, don't worry. If you have any ideas or preferences for how she finds out, leave it in a review!

:]

Mrs. (Edward)Cullen21


	4. Creepy Criminal

Hey!

Huge HUGE Shout out/THANK YOU to Lexie-Rae. That idea was amazing in every way. All credit goes to her for this sprout of inspiration. Props/kudos to you, Lexie! :] You were also right about Carter, but we'll see how correct you are. ;]

And Jamie knows about Dan and Keith.

As always, Disclaimer: I do not own One Tree Hill.

_____

"Seriously?" Peyton said, dropping her hands to her side as she and Lilly stood in her office after Carter had left. He looked at Lilly but hadn't said anything, just as Lilly had expected. "That's The Mysterious Stranger? Really? He's like total emo/scary looking. I half wanted to call Lucas and tell him to come protect me."

Lilly rolled her eyes at this, flopping down on the couch where Carter had been sitting before her. "Oh, come on. He's not that bad. He's actually pretty cute. Just because he has long hair doesn't make him scary."

"Hair that is greasy with little birdie eyes that look black-"

"But he can sing."

Peyton stopped. "Still, he's creepy."

Peyton sat down next to Lilly on the couch, groaning as she laid back and ran a hand over her enlarged stomach. "How can you even be attracted to that kid? He looks like a criminal."

Lilly snorted. "It's not like your taste in men is the best."

Peyton straightened her back, leaning against her arms. "Luke doesn't look like a criminal and he says more than two words when you see him."

Smiling, Lilly looked up to Peyton. "You didn't walk directly into him and feel how muscular he is."

"What in the world are you talking about?"

The girls both turned as Lucas walked in, giving them a quizzical look. Peyton stood up from where she was sitting and gave Lucas a kiss that Lilly wasn't very interested in seeing. Lucas leaned down and said something to the baby and Lilly turned her head so they wouldn't see her gagging. "Nothing. We weren't talking about anything."

Lucas looked between the two of them, eyeing each. "Right…"

"Lilly thinks she found a cute guy at school but I think he's incredibly creepy." Peyton squealed, biting her tongue.

"Peyton!" Lilly exclaimed, groaning at what was coming next. She hated it when Lucas played the over-protective big brother. She wished he would just leave her life alone but Lucas Scott never left anything alone.

"I'm sorry!" Peyton cried. "Pregnancy has made me tell everybody's secrets. I can't lie worth a damn."

"Well, it doesn't matter what either of you think of him, because Lilly is not dating." Lucas said, kissing the top of Lilly's head much to her dismay.

"Who says I'm not dating?"

"You're seventeen, Lil. You're too young."

"You know, Luke," Peyton started, pointing her finger at him. "When you were seventeen, you and Brooke got drunk and you got a tattoo. And me and Nathan…."

"Okay!" Lucas held up his hand, signaling for her to stop. "She gets the picture. But that was different. And she can learn from my mistake."

Lucas making a mistake? Humph. Lilly thought to herself, standing up. "Okay, well, as much fun as this is. I called Jamie like ten minutes ago to come pick me up and I'm sure he's here by now, so I'll see you guys later-"

"Why'd you call Jamie?" Lucas asked, stopping her before she left. "You knew Peyton's car was in the shop and that I'd be picking her up, I could've given you a ride home."

And have to deal with the awkward conversation you would try to make on the way home? I don't think so, Lilly thought to herself before answering. "Didn't think about it. Sorry."

"See ya, Lil!" Peyton shouted after her.

____

"Why didn't you just have Lucas give you a ride home?" Jamie asked when Lilly sat down in the passenger seat.

"Because that would've been awkward." Lilly answered, changing the station and again when Jamie tried to change it back. She swatted his hand away when he tried a second time. "Besides, I want to spend as little time with him as possible. And Oh! Guess who came into the studio today!"

"Grandpa Dan?"

Lilly frowned. "Uncle Dan? Why would he come to the studio?"

Jamie rolled his eyes, hitting her arm and then pointing to the side of the road in front of him. "No, Grandpa Dan is right there."

Jamie stopped the car, cutting the lights wondering if he had seen them. "What should we do?"

"Why are you acting like this? It's just Uncle Dan. He's your grandpa. Shouldn't you say hi or something?" Lilly said.

Jamie bit his tongue, he knew Lilly didn't know about Dan and Keith, and even though he didn't approve, he had never told her. After Dan had gotten a new heart the summer he turned six, Jamie thought of him differently. After Dan had told him the truth, he had put it aside because Jamie thought Dan was going to die. But, then he didn't die and got a new life instead. Jamie looked at him differently, finally letting his emotions of the idea of Dan killing someone get to him. He knew Lilly wasn't close to Dan as it was, her knowing how bad of a man he was just not _how_ bad. Still, Jamie felt guilty for not telling her. HE cajoled himself with the fact that it wasn't his secret to tell, and if anybody should tell her, Karen should.

"Um, let's just keep driving. No big deal. He probably doesn't want to be interrupted on his walk." Jamie turned the engine over and started driving.

Lilly frowned, but continued on with her story anyways. "Well, anyways, Carter Smith came in."

"Carter Smith?"

"Yeah!" Lilly said, grinning. "He's the Mysterious Stranger I've been looking for! Haley discovered him somewhere, probably at school now that I think of it, and told Peyton about him so he came in and sang for her to hear! He was good, too."

"Huh."

"What?" Lilly asked, catching on to the weird tone of his voice.

"Carter Smith was the guy who was arrested for doing drugs last year. Not exactly the guy you should be falling for, don't you think?"

Lilly looked out the window for a moment. "That was last year, right? And who's to say he hasn't changed? You don't know him, I don't know him-"

"Exactly why you shouldn't be trying to get in his pants."

Lilly looked offended. "Who says I'm trying to get in his pants? I just think he's mysteriously cute. I really have to tell Aunt Brooke about this. She's gonna love it."

"No, she's not. Aunt Brooke is gonna flip out when she sees what creepy guy you've picked."

Lilly threw her hands up in the air, frustrated. "Creepy? He is not creepy! Sheesh, you and Peyton."

"You're not really trying to get in his pants, are you?" Jamie asked as he pulled up to her house.

She stepped out, but turned around and leaned down so she could see him. "No, I just want to get to know him, that's all. See you tomorrow, thanks for the ride."

"No prob." Jamie said as she shut the door and walked away.

____

The next day at school Lilly looked for Carter even more than she had already. Hearing him sing had escalated her curiosity about him, and she wasn't giving up. She was going to talk to him even if it killed her. Jamie didn't approve, saying he was a creeper and not the type of guy she should be hanging out with. But, Lilly didn't care what he said. She thought he was perfect. He was everything Lucas wasn't.

Since she now knew that he was into music, Lilly walked along the music hallway of the school before class started, to see if he was there. Indeed, he was. He was sitting on a chair in the music room by himself, playing his guitar. Lilly stepped in quietly, leaning against the wall by the door. She watched him play for a couple of minutes, listening to the type of music he was playing; it was indie, maybe mixed in with a bit of rock here and there, but Lilly liked it. His voice was soft, and quiet for a guy. He stopped playing and turned the page of the music book in front of him.

"Are you gonna say something or are you just going to stand there and watch?" He said, looking up to her.

Lilly's eyes got big, not having realized that he knew she was there. "I…uh…" She stumbled, placing a hand to her forehead. "I'm sorry. I just, I heard you yesterday at Peyton's and I…"

"…wanted to hear more." He finished. "You're pretty nosy, you know that?"

She shrugged. "I'm just surprised is all. I didn't expect you to be the music type."

"What type did you think I was?"

Now, Lilly was at a loss for words. Was he criminal type like Peyton had said, or just creepy like Jamie thought? "Um…I don't know exactly."

He nodded. "You doing anything Sunday night?"

Lilly shook her head no. She became ungrounded tomorrow, which just now seemed to fit perfectly.

"Good. I'll pick you up at seven?"

Lilly nodded, before she could give him her address the bell rang and he shooed her out of the room before the teacher came in and saw her.

--

English was Lilly's first class. Because they were in a way related, Haley wasn't Lilly's teacher. Instead Lilly had grumpy old Mrs. Schultz who really hated kids. Well, at least she hated Lilly. Lilly was sure of it. She wasn't a very nice old woman in the first place, and Lilly really tried to get Haley as her teacher so she would actually learn something other than how to yell at students. But, the principal said no and that was that.

"Okay, class," Mrs. Schultz started once everyone was sitting in their seat. When everyone ignored her and continued to talk to the person sitting next to them, Mrs. Schultz dropped her teacher textbook on the floor, making a loud bang.

"Class!" She yelled. Everyone quieted down, facing her. "Today we are going to start reading a new book. Anyone want to take a guess at what it is?"

Nobody said anything.

"Just as I had expected." She started, walking around her desk and standing in front of them. "We are going to read An Unkindness of Ravens by our towns very own, Lucas Scott."

_Freaking Perfect!_ Lilly thought, immediately shooting her arm up in the air.

"No, Lilly," Mrs. Schultz said giving her a death glare. "You cannot get out of reading this."

"Oh come on, Mrs. Schultz!" Lilly whined, putting her arm back down. "I already know what happens. He is my brother after all."

"No, we are not reading to see what happens, we are reading to learn how to become better writers."

Lilly groaned. She really did not care about being better writers. Writing wasn't her thing; it was Lucas'. She had never read the book. She thought of it as a way of getting back at Lucas for being perfect. Only thing was, Lucas never seemed too upset that she hadn't read it, neither did Karen, which was strange to Lilly. This didn't bother her though, she figured they were doing some reverse psychology thing even if it was just a book.

__

"You're really reading it in class?" Jamie said to Lilly as they set out the plates on the picnic table. It was Saturday, and the Scott Family and Friends Annual Picnic. Everyone was at the beach, setting up the food. Lucas and Nathan had hauled down a couple picnic tables and Karen and Haley made Jamie and Lilly set up the table.

"Yeah, can you believe it?" Lilly replied, setting down the napkins. "This is going to be weird. She's probably going to want me to bring Lucas in to speak in front of the class. Which I'm not going to do. She can ask him. It's not like he's terribly hard to find anyways, he is the basketball coach."

Jamie said nothing. He knew this was going to be bad, he could feel the trouble coming already. Lilly was going to read about Keith and Dan, and all hell would break loose. Because once Lilly found out about the secret everyone had been keeping from her, she wasn't going to be happy, and Jamie, Lucas and Karen would be the first to know about how mad she was.

"Maybe you just shouldn't read it," Jamie said, trying to think of a way to keep the peace. "Maybe you could just pretend. It's not like you don't know what happens in the book so if she asks you a question, you'll know it."

"James Lucas Scott, are you trying to get me in trouble?" Lilly laughed. "Usually I'm the one saying that. You should be saying something along the lines of 'It'll be fun' or 'just go ahead and read it, no big deal'" Lilly imitated his voice.

Jamie rolled his eyes. "I'm just saying, you don't actually have to read it."

"Hey, Godson and favorite Scott Girl," Brooke greeted, as she walked over, holding her 2 year old daughter, Julia and a bowl of watermelon as her five year old son, Brody followed. "What are you talking about?"

"I have to read Lucas' book in class." Lilly told her, sitting down at the table with Brody. "Isn't that weird?"

"Uh, you haven't felt weird until your parents, and everybody you work with know about all the slutty things you did as a teenager courtesy of said book." Brooke sat down at the table, switching Julia's position to her lap. She set the bowl of watermelon on the table and began to field the little pieces to Julia, taking out the seeds in the process.

"Touché." Lilly answered.

"Mommy?" Brody asked, turning to his mom.

"Yes, beautiful baby boy?"

"What does slutty mean?"

Lilly and Jamie both burst out laughing as Brooke's eyes get big and her mouth drops open. "Uh, when you're sixteen I'll tell you all about it. I promise."

"Okay." He shrugs and runs off to play in the water with Emma and Nate Jr., Jamie's younger siblings.

"Nice one." Jamie commented laughing.

"So, Aunt Brooke," Lilly said, "Guess who has a date tomorrow night!"

Brooke grinned. "Ah! Finally! Oh, this is perfect! I can do your hair, and don't worry, I'll bring something from the store for you to wear, everything will be amazing! Who is he? Is he cute?"

Jamie snorted, Lilly shot him a glare before turning back to Brooke. "He's just a kid from school. _I _think he's cute, but Jamie and Peyton think he's creepy."

Brooke pouted. "Wait, Peyton met him before I did?"

"He is working on his music with her." Lilly explained.

"Fine. I'm meeting him tomorrow night then."

Before Lilly could respond, Julian called Brooke over to where the rest of the adults were. Brooke smiled, said goodbye and walked over.

"You do realize that once she sees Carter she's going to slam the door in his face and not let you leave, right?" Jamie asked pointedly.

----

Okay, next chapter: Lilly's date, more drama with Carter, and she starts reading the book! Ideas and suggestions are always welcome!


	5. Coffee and Books

Hey! Thank you so much for the reviews, even if there aren't that many. I do love feedback.

As always: Disclaimer: I do not own One Tree Hill. Chad and Hilary would not be leaving if I did.

---

Lilly took one more look at herself in the mirror. Brooke did her make-up and hair and picked out her clothes. Luckily, Lilly had been able to convince Brooke that she was not needed for the actual picking up. Lilly smiled at herself. Tonight was the night. She was finally going to get a boyfriend. She hadn't told Peyton because she didn't want Lucas to know and so far it had worked out. If Peyton thought he looked like a criminal, God only knows what Lucas would think of him.

Lilly walked out of her room, waiting by the door. If she could manage it, she would avoid Carter meeting Karen. It wouldn't be a good meeting. It was a good sign that Karen was busy with doing the payroll and all sorts of stuff for her bookstore in the kitchen. It was even better when Lilly saw Carter pull up, still surprised that he knew where she lived, and Karen hadn't even looked up.

"Okay, Mom," Lilly said tentatively, opening the door. "I'm leaving. See ya later, bye."

Karen waved and said a small goodbye and Lilly left. Carter drove an old navy blue cavalier. The door squeaked when she opened it, and the inside smelled like cigarettes, and when she looked around she saw a package of Malboro Lights lying on in between the seats. She shrugged. It wasn't what she was used to, but she wasn't exactly looking for what she was used to.

Carter just looked at her, didn't say anything. He gave a slight smile, well, what Lilly thought to be a smile and backed out of her driveway.

--

They were at a coffee shop. It was across town, close to the border. Lilly didn't know the name of it, nor did she have any desire to. The place was dimly lit, with people Lilly wouldn't normally associate herself with here and there. Carter had a show there. Lilly was surprised, she figured they would do the normal date thing: movie, dinner, yada yada. But, then again, this was Carter, and he wasn't like any other guy at school.

Carter was backstage, getting ready to go on and Lilly was sitting at a table, watching him. She had a green piece of paper wrapped around her wrist, signaling her age. She wished she could take it off, and just get a drink. She didn't though, and while waiting for Carter to come on stage, she took a sip of her Diet Coke.

Carter hadn't said much on the ride over. She tried to flirt with him a little, asking him where they were, smiling like Aunt Brooke had taught her, but, he just used the smallest answers. He watched the road, the only time he ever looked at her was when she got in the car the first time and when he held the doors open for her. It drove Lilly crazy. She wanted to know what was going on in his head, wondering what he thought of her. He hadn't shown a slice of emotion the entire time.

"Hey there, beautiful."

She turned to see some old guy smiling at her playfully. She smiled at him, seductively and leaned in. "I'm 17." He quickly turned and left and Lilly went back to watching the band on the small stage in the corner of the shop. They weren't that good, but she didn't care. She just liked being somewhere other than home. The song ended and the band left. Some guy walked up on stage and started talking. "And now, we have another one of our very own talents. Everyone, Carter Smith!"

Lilly straightened her back in excitement, leaning forward so she could hear better. He started singing. The song was one he had written himself. He sang quietly, not even the mic helping. But, Lilly picked up on the tone of the song and knew it was more angsty than she had anticipated.

He did one more song, one Lilly tried to listen to but couldn't get herself to pay attention. After that, he hopped off stage and walked over to her, sitting down across from her.

"That was really good." Lilly said after the waiter brought him a soda. "I'm impressed."

He raised an eyebrow. "Impressed, eh?"

Lilly smiled, sheepishly. "Yeah, I didn't expect this."

"I seem to surprise you a lot, don't I?"

She nodded, smiling. "Seems so."

"So," He said, leaning in. "Tell me about you. What's it like being Lucas Scott's sister?"

"Oh god." Lilly rolled her eyes, sighing. "Here we go."

"I take it you don't like it, then, huh?"

"Nope. Everyone just always assumes that I play basketball, or that I'm just as good at writing, or I'm just as good at pleasing everyone. It's like everyone just forgot he was human and assumes he's perfect and they can't possibly understand why I'm not the same."

"So, you resent him."

Shrugging, Lilly played with the straw in her drink. "Yeah, I guess so. I don't know. I just…" She stopped, looking around the coffee shop. "I wish I didn't have such big shoes to fill. Lucas is always trying to be the big brother, but I don't want anything to do with him."

"It's not really his fault everyone loves him."

"Yeah, I guess not."

__

Carter and Lilly continued to talk for another hour. Well, Lilly talking and Carter asked questions. Carter didn't say much about his family, or his life, and while Lilly worried about the reason but was too preoccupied thinking of good answers to his questions to really fret about it. After they finished talking, they went to get ice cream and walked along the beach and Carter took Lilly home. There weren't any lights on when Lilly got home, so she stayed in the car for another twenty minutes, 'getting to know him' better.

Lilly opened the door quietly, tip-toeing in and tentatively pushing the door closed.

"Well?"

Lilly jumped ten straight feet in the air from shock at the sound of Lucas's voice. "Jesus, Lucas! What the hell?"

He was sitting on the couch, a book in his hands. He set the book down on the side table and stood up. He glanced out the front window and back to Lilly. "Why didn't you tell me you had a date with the creepy criminal?"

Lilly rolled her eyes at Peytons nickname and set her purse on the chair in front of her. "Goodnight, Lucas." Lilly said, turning to go to her bedroom.

"Whoa, wait up there speedy gonzalas." Lucas said, stepping in front of her. "Who is this guy?"

"He's just a guy. No big deal."

"Peyton said he looks like a criminal. You can't go out with a guy who looks like a criminal."

"Says who?"

"I'm telling Mom."

"Oh, very mature, Lucas."

"When are you going out again?"

"Who says we're going out again?"

"I'm meeting him."

"No, you're not. Now, I am tired so I am going to sleep. See ya later."

___

Today was Tuesday. Carter had called her a couple of times, just talking with her. She loved having a boyfriend. She had successfully kept him from meeting Lucas. He would have a cow if he saw what Carter looked like. And, then, of course, Lilly would yell at him for being so overprotective when he had no right to be and it would just turn out to be knock-down-dragged-out fight that Lilly didn't feel like having.

She was in English, now. They had just gotten to the part where Nathan had crashed Peyton's car when Mrs. Schultz finally realized that Lilly was sleeping. Lilly opened her eyes when Mrs. Schultz yelled at her.

"What?" Lilly whined. "I already know what happens. Nathan and Lucas get in a huge fight, Lucas takes the car back to Uncle Keiths, who by the way is my father, so the car can get fixed, Keith is apprehensive about the whole situation, Peyton is mad about her car…"

"Lilly! You do not need to tell us what happens." Mrs. Schultz scolded, filling out a detention slip.

"Oh, come on Mrs. Schultz, this isn't fair!"

---

"You got detention." Karen stated blankly after Lilly told her.

They were sitting in the kitchen. Karen had just got home when Lilly told her. Karen didn't seem surprised, and Lilly didn't care.

"Mom, it was so unfair." Lilly whined. "She's making me read Lucas' book. I already know what happens!"

_Not everything, _Karen quietly thought to herself as she looked down at the pink slip in front of her. Standing up, she walked to the spot in front of the kitchen sink, looking out the window. "Look, Lil, why don't you just go to your room for now, okay?"

Lilly stared at her, wondering what had happened. "Is that it? You're not gonna yell? Nothing?"

Karen closed her eyes, leaning against the countertop. "Just go, will ya?"

Lilly didn't say anything as she left.

Karen waited until she was gone to pick up the phone and call Lucas. "Hello?" He answered.

"Hey Luke, we have a problem."

"What is it, Mom? What's wrong?"

"Lilly is reading your book in class."

"Oh."

___

Okay, there is more coming soon. The real drama of the story will be coming. I probably should've made this chapter longer, but I was at a loss for what should come next, so I'll deal with it in the next one. Ideas are always, always welcome! Be sure to click the green button and tell me what you think, or if you have any predictions, questions, anything really.


	6. Truth

Disclaimer: I do not own One Tree Hill

Oh, and question: How many of you want a Lucas and Lilly brother/sister reunion type thing? I haven't decided if I wanted that for the ending, so I thought I would let you decide. No, this is not the end and no, this is not even close.

____

Lilly and Carter continued to date, and Lilly continued to keep him away from her family. The only people who knew what he looked like were Peyton, Haley and Jamie. Although, Jamie never talked to him. Still, every chance he got, Jamie let her know he didn't approve. It was weird, though. Lucas was more interested in her relationship with Carter, asking all sorts of questions about him, wondering when he would meet Carter. Lilly almost forgot she didn't like him, almost forgot who he was. Karen was the total opposite. She didn't act like she had any interest in Lillys boyfriend, or if he was good enough for her.

Not that she objected. If Karen had met him, Lilly knew she would have a cow. Saying what a bad kid he was, using Peyton's nickname for him 'Creepy Criminal'. Lilly wasn't even sure if they were boyfriend-girlfriend. Carter never brought up the topic, and Lilly was too nervous to bring it up herself.

They went on several dates over the next couple of weeks; mostly they went to his gigs. He did his thing, and she listened to his songs. He had never sung a love song, nor did she expect him to. HE wasn't that type of guy, even if she wished he was. They talked about little things. She asked questions about things she had wondered about him, and he answered some of them. Not all of them. She had never been to his house, and it was getting terribly hard not to ignore her annoyance over not knowing anything about him.

Another thing that continued, was the reading of Lucas's book. They were almost to the end, close. That was what kept Lilly's mouth shut. That soon, it would be over. She would be sitting in class and random kids would turn and look at her at random times. She was annoyed. She couldn't yell at them to turn around or she would get another detention slip like she had the first couple of times she did yell. One kid even came up to her after class asking what it was like to be Lucas' sister. She told him Lucas had done a complete 180 and had turned into an alcoholic, beating his own kids. Nobody ever asked her about Lucas ever again.

___

Everything seemed to be going smoothly, all things considered. Until one day in English, when they had just gotten past the school shooting. Lilly knew little about the school shooting. Nobody really talked to her about it. She didn't think too much of it, chalking it up as the event having taken a toll on those involved. They read about how everyone's reaction, how difficult it had been for Lucas to attend Jimmy's funeral. They read about their weekend getaway to Rachel's, and how Nathan proposed to Haley. They read about how Lucas felt when senior year came, and about Peyton's psycho stalker, and about Nathan's relationship with Daunte, they read about Brooke and Nathan's sex tape, and how Peyton didn't want to go to Prom, and then what happened to her and Brooke on Prom night.

She was right about to fall asleep when something Mrs. Schultz said caught her attention. She looked up, turning the page in her book. And there it was.

_My father had killed Keith._

It was like time had stopped. Lilly just stared at the sentence, wondering if it was true. It couldn't be. Her father had died in a car accident, her mom had told her so. And her mother wouldn't lie to her, would she?

Would she?

Standing up, Lilly grabbed her bag and ran out the door ignoring Mrs. Schultz calls. She ran out of the school, found her car and hopped in. There weren't a lot of people in the bookstore when Lilly walked in, so Karen was sitting in the back, doing some type of paperwork. She stood up when she saw Lilly, getting ready to yell at her for not being in school.

"How could you lie to me?!" Lilly demanded. "How could you lie to me about Dad?"

Karen took a deep breath, standing up. "Lilly-"

"No," Lilly had tears falling down her face now. "No, out of all the things you've done. Wishing I was Lucas, treating me like you never wanted me, this hurts worse. How could you not tell me?"

"I was just trying to protect you." Karen said, stepping closer to her.

"Protect me? He was my father! I deserve to know what happened to him and why he isn't here!"

She stormed out of the store, getting in her car and driving as fast as she could. She knew where she was going. Since it wasn't yet basketball season, Lucas was a stay at home dad while he wrote his next book. Not bothering to knock, Lilly barged in, letting the door slam against the wall behind it. She ran into his office, where he was seated at his computer typing. His smile faded when he saw how mad she was.

"How could you?" She screamed, tears falling freely.

Lucas stood up, "Lilly, what are you-?"

"How could you keep that from me? I deserve to know who killed my father!"

Realization dawned on him. He looked down, taking a deep breath. "Lilly, I'm sorry-"

"Bullshit! He was my father!"

"I know, Lilly. And I wanted to tell you, but Mom-"

"Oh right, Mom says something and you follow right? You don't care." She scoffed, turning and storming out of the house. Lucas followed.

"Lilly, wait!"

She didn't listen to him, though, getting in her car and driving off. She was so mad. She couldn't contain herself. She just wanted to scream. How could they keep this from her? She had a right to know. Keith was her father. A father she never got to know. She didn't know where to go, didn't know what to do. She was just driving around, crying, looking for something to make it better. That's when she saw him. He was walking down the street, hands in pockets, whistling. _Whistling_, Lilly scoffed, pulling her car over and jumping out. She ran over, stopping him in his tracks.

"Lilly, what a surprise-"Dan started to wrap his arms around her, planning on giving her a hug but stopped at the harshness of her words.

"You son of a bitch!" She screamed as he pulled back. "You fucking son of a bitch!"

She stood there, yelling at him for who knows how long. She didn't realize how long it had been until she felt hands on her elbows, pulling her back. She knew it was Jamie before she turned around. He wrapped his arms around her and let her cry on his shoulder.

____

She and Jamie went back to his house. She cried on his shoulder, as he listen to her. She was saying how she should've known her mother would lie to her like this. Jamie did his best to comfort her, and not let her know he knew the whole time. She would flip on him, if she knew.

Haley and Nathan had walked in while she was crying but Jamie had shooed them away, signaling to them that he would tell them everything later without Lilly seeing.

When Lilly calmed down, they watched some movies. They were in the middle of The Breakfast Club when Jamie fell asleep. Lilly laughed for the first time that day, finding it funny that Jamie fell asleep when it was usually the other way around. When she was absolutely positive Jamie wasn't going to wake up, she carefully stood up and walked out the back door.

____

Lilly didn't know how to find him, really. She had called but he hadn't answered. So, naturally she went to the coffee shop they often went to. He wasn't in there, but she saw Mac, the guy who owned the place that Lilly met one time. She walked over, and waited while he helped a customer.

"Lilly!" He greeted emphatically, smiling. "Where's you other half?"

She smiled slightly. "I was actually hoping you could answer that."

"Have you checked his apartment?"

She tried to hide the fact that she had no idea he lived in an apartment. She wasn't sure if it had worked or not. He just smiled politely and told her where it was.

When she knocked on the door, she heard yelling.

"You stupid, stupid kid!" She heard a crash. And more yelling. "I told you to be here on time, dammit!"

She knocked again, wanting the yelling to stop. The yelling did and she heard footsteps. The door opened, and she saw his face. His cheek was red, and his eyes screamed surprise. He stepped out and closed the door behind himself.

"Hey." He said, running his hand through his long hair. "What are you doing here?"

She stumbled for words. "I…uh, no big deal." She raised her hand, tentatively placing it on his cheek where it had turned red. "What's going on? What happened?"

He sighed, pushing her hand away. "Nothing. What are you doing here?"

"I just wanted to talk to you. Seriously, Carter what's going on? Your face is red, and all that yelling. I heard-"

"I said I don't want to talk about it!" He screamed at her.

She stood there in shock, taken aback by his tone. "Why don't you ever want to talk about it? All we ever do is talk about me. I know nothing about you. What is going on?!"

It happened so fast, Lilly didn't have time to react. One minute he was standing there, all mad and somewhat sexy and the next minute the back of his hand was on her cheek, hard. She stumbled back, her hand immediately flying to her cheek to try and soothe the pain. HE stood there, breathing hard.

"I said I don't want to talk about it." He said quietly before walking back inside his apartment.

____

Dun Dun Dun! Ahhah! Finally, we get to the real drama. Let me know what you think.

Oh, and just to be safe, I'm gonna apologize here. I didn't know how Lucas said it in his book, so I kinda just winged it. If you know where I can find out, or what the real words are, tell me and I will change them. Thanks!


	7. Rising Fear

Hey guys! Thank you so much for the reviews, I really do appreciate them! All of you really wanted Brooke to be her confidante, and the more I thought about it, the more I agree with you. (Kudos to you guys!) But, I think I'm gonna wait and put that in another chapter, and you'll see why. :]

Disclaimer: I do not own One Tree Hill.

__________________

Lilly walked slowly. She wasn't walking back to Aunt Haley and Uncle Nathan's, nor was she walking home. She was just walking around Tree Hill. Her state of shock had yet to wear off, as did the pain in her cheek. She rubbed it from time to time, trying to make it feel better and hoping to god it wouldn't bruise. She didn't know what lie she would tell everyone. She knew she couldn't tell the truth. She didn't want that kind of drama. Plus, she wasn't even sure what had happened herself. Carter was probably just really angry. She had never seen this side of him, though she wasn't sure what side of him she _had_ seen. Still, when Lilly decided to go back to The Scott's, she was sure he wouldn't do it again.

She opened the door carefully, and quietly tip-toed in. She shut the door behind herself. She was a little preoccupied, wondering what she would tell Jamie in the morning when he saw the bruise Lilly knew would be there, which is why when she saw her Uncle Nathan leaning against the other side of the kitchen counter staring at her, she jumped ten feet in the air.

"Where have you been?" He asked, motioning for her to sit down on the barstool across from him.

"I…uh, went to a friends." She replied, sitting down. She placed her elbow on the countertop and her hand on her cheek, covering the red handmark completely.

He nodded. "I talked to Lucas."

She blinked at him before she realized she was supposed to be mad at her mom and her brother. After…the incident with Carter, she had completely forgotten about her father and why she wanted to talk to Carter in the first place. "Oh, right." She said, looking away.

"Now," Nathan started. "You're going to listen to me whether you like it or not. Understood?"

She nodded, so he continued. "When Keith was killed, we thought it was Jimmy for the longest time. And for the most part, everyone accepted that. Well, not everyone. Mouth, Lucas, and Skillz especially had a hard time accepting what Jimmy did, because they knew what Keith was to Jimmy and how he treated Jimmy. Now, Dan is not a good guy, never has been. But, he's my father and I grew up with him which is why when Lucas first told me of his suspicions, I didn't believe him. I didn't want to believe him. Lucas didn't grow up with him, and didn't still need to feel like his father was a good man, so he had an easier time with the truth. When Dan finally confessed to what he had done, a lot of things changed. The way Lucas and I saw him, everything. Sure, we knew what a bad guy he was, but we didn't know he was capable of murder. Karen and Lucas just wanted to protect you from that side of the world. They wanted to protect you from seeing the bad in the world when you were so young. Time just got away from them, and it was never the right time to tell you."

Lilly looked down as a tear fell down her cheek. She wasn't sure why she was crying, the father incident, or the Carter incident. "I just wish I would've known."

Nathan nodded. "Well you know now. And the past is in the past. You can't change it, no matter what."

Lilly sighed, wiping away her tears. "Did Dan go to jail? Or did he just confess to you."

"Yeah, he went to jail. He got out right after we got out of college, on parole." Nathan stood up, groaning. "Now, you go back upstairs and go to bed."

She nodded, said goodnight and walked towards the stairs, but stopped when she heard him call her name.

"Oh, and Lilly?"

"Yeah?"

"If you ever sneak out of my house again when you're not supposed, I will hunt you down and drag you back."

_________

Karen and Lucas were sitting in the living room, waiting for her when she got home. Lilly was so tired when she walked through the door, she barely even registered that they were there. She just looked at them and walked back to her room.

"I don't feel like talking about it." She said, nonchalantly. She opened her bedroom door and left it open, knowing they would follow anyways. She lay down on her bed and buried her face in her soft pillow, looking for some comfort to her sore cheek.

"Lilly, please listen to us." Karen said, sitting down on the edge of her daughter's bed. Lucas sat down on the other and they exchanged glances. "We just want to talk."

"I don't care." Lilly said, though her voice was muffled by the pillow. "I'm not mad."

"What?"

Lilly turned her head, her bruise faced down so they wouldn't notice it right away. "I said I don't care anymore. I'm not mad. I talked to Uncle Nathan."

"You're not mad because you talked to Nathan?" Lucas asked, confused by her sudden change in moods.

Lilly just nodded. "Can I just sleep, please?"

Karen looked at Lucas and motioned for them to leave. Lilly waited to sit up until they were gone and the door was closed. She wanted to talk to somebody, but she couldn't. She couldn't tell them what had happened. She had already decided that it wouldn't happen again, and if it was not going to happen again there was no reason to tell anyone about it.

____

Lilly opened her eyes to her cell phone ringing it. Groggily, she sat up, rubbing her eyes and picking up her phone. She looked at the screen on the front, seeing the words 'Carter' pop up. She let it ring for a while, then decided to just answer it. "Hello?"

"Hey," He said, simply. She tried to decipher if he felt guilty or not through his voice, but she got nothing.

"Hey," She replied, using a colder tone than usual.

"Um, do you want to meet up tonight?" He sked.

_Do you want to meet up tonight?_ That's it? No apology, explanation? Nothing? Lilly sighed, making sure Carter could hear it through the phone and thought for a moment. Probably, he didn't want to apologize over the phone. Right? He just wanted to apologize in person. That was the polite thing to do, plus he most likely knew that apologizing in person would mean more to her.

"Sure." She said, tentatively. "Where at?"

_______________

Carter had a gig, as usual. It was at the same coffee shop they always went to. Lilly put on make-up to cover her bruise and told her mom she was going out. Karen didn't say anything, and Lilly left. She knew she was going to have to face them sooner or later, but the procrastinator in her said later. Lilly walked in and looked around. Carter was back-stage, preparing. He would be on in any minutes now. She sat down in her usual spot, and Mac brought her usual diet coke over. Truthfully, Mac didn't care about the age limit, or the police for that matter. If she wanted an alcoholic drink, she could've gotten one. But, Lilly had never felt the need to drink.

She watched him play, hearing the same song she had heard thousands of times before. She continually placed her hand on her cheek to hide her bruise, even if it was covered, and then put it back on the table. She was self-conscious about the bruise, she felt as if everyone was staring at it. She felt like that even more when Carter walked over and stared at it.

"Hey," he said.

"Hi." She replied, folding her arms across her body.

They didn't say anything for awhile. Lilly, looking away and Carter just staring at her. Lilly sipped at her drink, waiting for him until she finally snapped.

"Well?" She demanded.

"Well, what?"

"Are you gonna apologize or what?"

"I don't need to apologize. I told you I didn't want to talk about it."

"You don't just hit someone and not apologize, god-"

"You're doing it again."

She stood up and walked away. She didn't have to deal with this.

_____

The next Monday after school, Lilly was in the photography lab at school, photo-shopping a picture of hers. The Rhode Island of Design offered scholarships for artistic abilities, so she was putting together a portfolio of her best photos yet. She had been working on this for two weeks, the deadline was in one. Lately, to keep things off of her mind she had started to pay more attention to the details of the pictures, something she was sure would put her ahead of every other student.

"Hey, Lilly." A voice said behind her.

She turned to see Mitch Rencotti standing behind her. Mitch was a fellow photography geek. He was good, way better than she was. He had his sights on Yale, and Duke and big ivy league schools like that. He, too, had been working on his portfolio.

"Hey, Mitch. You working on your portfolio too?" She asked, smiling slightly.

"Yupp." He sighed as he sat down at the computer next to her and turned it on. "I'm not even close to being finished. My deadline is in five days, I don't even care how good the photos are. I just hope I can make it."

Lilly chuckled. "I have one more week. I should have plenty of time to finish, I'm just doing a little extra."

"And avoiding your mom and brother?" He guessed. He continued when she gave him a questioning look. "I heard about Mrs. Schultz English class."

She nodded and looked down, trying to send him the signal that she didn't want to talk about it.

"I'm sorry." He said. "I know it's probably not something you want to talk about, but…" He typed something on his computer. "Last year I found out that my dad wasn't my dad. My mom had had an affair and I was the product. I found out in front of complete strangers. I know it's not the same. But I was pretty pissed at my mom just the same. She knew, so did everybody else in my family. If you ever want to talk, or rant, I'm here."

She just nodded and they continued to work. They didn't talk for the hour they were in there, and when they walked out together, they just smiled at each other and said goodbye. She really didn't think it was that big of a deal until she saw Carter leaning against her car, scowling at her. The parking lot was empty, only her, Carter and Mitch, and Mitch had just left.

"Hey," She said, walking up and opening her the passenger door to her car to put her things in. "I don't-"

"What the hell was that?"

There it was. The anger. She saw it washing across his face, and she stepped back. "What was what?"

"That!" He pointed to the door at the school. She looked but didn't see anything suspicious. "You and that fag, flirting. You have a boyfriend!"

She wanted to scream at him, saying how bad he was of a boyfriend, but stopped. The fear rising again. "What are you talking about? That was nothing. I said goodbye, Mitch said goodbye. We're just friends. And some boyfriend you are."

"I know flirting when I see it, and that was flirting. And what the hell kind of question is that?" He was getting angrier by the minute. He was stepping closer, she was stepping back until she was backed against the car.

"I-I…."

He hit her. Again. Punched her in the stomach this time. She hurled over, groaning at the pain. She fell to the ground, knees bent, one arm holding her up, one arm across her stomach. She closed her eyes, whispering, "I wasn't flirting."

"Liar!" He screamed, kicking her.

She cried out, wondering how this could've happened to her.

________

Whew. That was tough. I added the Nathan/Lilly moment, only cause I thought him telling her to not sneak out of the house would be cute. Be sure to tell me what you think!

:]


	8. Enough

Hey guys! Thank you so much for your reviews and your support. I appreciate it so much, and all of your ideas are wonderful!

As always-Disclaimer: I'm not the owner of One Tree Hill.

____

Lilly was laying on her bed, staring at the ceiling when Karen walked in. She turned her head away from her for a moment, wiped her face and turned back around. She was relieved when she didn't notice. Karen sat down on the edge of her bed, waiting.

"We need to talk." Karen said. "It's a long time coming, so don't think you can get out of it."

"I wasn't planning on it." Lilly replied. "I get it. You were trying to protect me. Whatever, I'm over it."

"You're over it?" Karen asked incredulously. "You cannot be over it."

She shrugged. "I just…I've had time to think. I understand."

Karen gave her a look. "Lilly, please."

"I just don't want to talk about it." That was the truth. Lilly didn't care. Ever since Carter…she just didn't have the energy to care about Keith's death anymore. She did kind of understand where Karen was coming from. She still felt a bit betrayed, but truth was, she just didn't care.

"Lilly, you need to understand why I made that decision." Karen said, "When Keith died, I was so angry. With Dan, for not being a better brother, with Lucas, for going back in the school, but mostly I was just angry with the world for being so full of hate and malice. When I found out I was pregnant, everything changed. I still had a piece of Keith left, and that's what kept me going. Dan became nicer to me then, treating me like he had when we were in high school. I could never figure out why, and for a while there I didn't care. I didn't realize it until the truth was revealed, but Dan was just trying to make up for what he had done. I was so hurt by it, I didn't know what to do. But I did know that I didn't want my second child to grow up knowing what a terrible world was out there. You were right when you said I was just trying to protect you."

"I know," Lilly said. "I just wish you would've told me." She pushed her hair out of her face, putting her bruise out there to see. She wondered what Karen would say.

Karen looked at her, but didn't say anything. She stood up. "I'm gonna make some lunch. Do you want anything special?"

Lilly shook her head and watched her mom leave.

_____

She was sitting on the bleachers at the river court, thinking. She couldn't go to her usual thinking spot at the docks. She just couldn't be there after she found out the truth. She found it weird being here at the river court, though. It was the first time she did anything that Lucas had already done. This was why she went out with Carter in the first place-he was everything Lucas wasn't. He was the total opposite of her family. Now, she felt in over her head. She was so far in, she didn't know how to get out. She was scared to say no to him, to leave him. She was scared that he would do something worse. For the first time, fear was ruling her life.

"Hey, Lil." Jamie called as he walked up to her, basketball in hand. "Never thought I would see you here."

She looked up, shrugging. "Yeah, well…"

"Hey, what happened to your cheek?" He asked, sitting next to her.

She took a deep breath, looking away. "I fell down the stairs. No big deal." She gave him a weak smile, but he just looked at her. "Anyways, I have a question for you."

"Okay…"

"Did you know?"

And there it was. The question he had been dreading. "Yeah, I did. Lilly, I'm sorry, I should've told you."

"It's okay. I just wanted to know." She smiled at him to let him know she was okay. "Anyways, what are you doing out here?"

He stood up, and started dribbling the basketball he was holding. "Just practicing. We have a big game against the Falcons on Tuesday, so I need to practice."

"You sure you can get all the practice you need in just one day?"

Jamie made a face at her. "Ha-ha. Very funny."

____

There were good days, and then there were bad days. After awhile, Lilly was able to tell how bad of a day it was just by the way he was standing. It became tradition that she went to his gigs, and when he didn't have a gig, they would just hang out. Mostly, they hung out at the beach, at night when very little people were there. The hits got worse, but there was an unspoken rule that he didn't hit her above the neck. She wore long sleeves, and pants twenty-four-seven. She started spending a lot of time in her room, asking off work from the studio so she wouldn't have to be in public. Seeing Jamie at the river court was the fifth time in the last two weeks that she had seen him, which was unusual for them. Normally, they saw each other every day. But Lilly was so exhausted, not being able to sleep with bruises all over her body. Not to mention, she was scared he would find out. Jamie always knew how to read her. She guessed it was just a benefit of being family.

When the hits got really bad, and Lilly felt like she couldn't take anymore, she would think about telling someone, but, she didn't know who to tell. Karen didn't even say anything about the first bruise on her cheek, what would make her care? And if her own mother didn't notice or care enough to notice, who would? She didn't know who to talk to. Scratch that, she knew. She just didn't know how to deal with the aftermath. She was afraid of what Carter would do to her if he found out she had told. She just didn't know what to do.

____

One night, Lilly got a call from Carter telling her to meet her at the beach. She knew it was bad by the sound of his voice. She thought of not showing up, but she also knew that he would just come and find her and then it would be way worse. She thought of what she had done this time as she was driving over. She thought of nothing.

Before she stepped out of her car, she sent a text to Jamie telling him she was going to the beach with Carter. She didn't know why she sent it, she knew he and his family were having dinner with Aunt Brooke and Uncle Julian, but still, she sent it.

When she saw him sitting down, staring at the ocean, she knew something bad, really bad, had happened. She hesitantly turned around, yearning for the safety of her car. However much she yearned, her feet kept walking forward. She stood next to him, and took a deep breath.

"Hey, Carter. What's up?"

He stood when she spoke, turning to face her. "Peyton won't let me record an album. She says my songs aren't what she's looking for."

"Oh," Lilly said, not sure what to say. "I'm sorry."

"You have to talk to her."

Her head spun. "What?"

"You have to talk to her. You have to convince her I'm good enough."

"No, Carter I can't. I'm just the receptionist. And besides, Peyton won't listen to me. She never changes her mind."

"Lilly." His voice was dark.

She put her hand to her forehead when the headache started. "No, Carter, I can't. That's not my place. I'm sorry you didn't get it. It doesn't mean it's over, you just have to work at it."

"Agh!" He screamed. "You have to talk to her! You are my girlfriend, you have to talk to her!"

"I can't-"

The hitting started. Over and over, he hit her, not stopping for a second. He didn't bother with the no-face-rule. Lilly was on the ground, laying in the fetal position, praying for the pain to end. She closed her eyes as tears fell freely down her face, and everything went black.

____________

The next chapter will be a happier one, I promise. Thank you so much for your reviews and your support. It all means a lot to me. Let me know what you think!


	9. Aftermath

Hey guys!!

Okay, so it seems that I am not good at making stories fairly long. I don't know if this is a bad thing or not, but whatever. This is not the last chapter, but I guess it could be considered close. Who knows?

I have a couple ideas for another story, not that I know if I'll write any of them. Anyways, thank you for your reviews. I'm sure you think I say it a lot, but I feel you can't say it enough. Reviews are the only thing that keeps me going.

:]

Disclaimer: I do not own One Tree Hill.

____________

Aunt Brooke and Uncle Julian were over for dinner. Jamie was partly listening, but only partly. Julian and his dad were talking sports, while Aunt Brooke and his mom were talking about her store. Brody and Julia were playing with Jamie's video games. Jamie was bored. He had gotten a text from Lilly an hour earlier, saying how she was at the beach. He wasn't sure why she sent that to him, but it didn't faze him. Jamie stood up and walked to the kitchen to get a drink. After pouring himself a coke, he was checking his phone when Aunt brooke walked in.

"Hey godson." She said, smiling at him.

"Hey, Aunt Brooke."

"Hey, have you talked to Lilly, lately? I haven't seen her around."

Jamie nodded, telling her about Lilly at the river court and about Lilly's bruise on her cheek.

"Lilly said she just fell down the stairs. But, the weird thing is," Jamie stopped, looking down.

"What, Jamie?"

"The bruise looked like a handprint."

"A handprint? How is it shaped like a handprint if she…" Brooke's mouth dropped open. "Oh my god. You remember when you were five, and I 'fell down the stairs'"

"Yeah, you had bruises all over."

"I didn't fall down the stairs, Jamie. I was attacked. My store was being robbed, and I was there."

And that's when Jamie figured it out. He wasn't sure how he had missed this, but he had. "Aunt Brooke, you remember what I told you about Carter, Lilly's boyfriend?"

______

Lilly was in so much pain. She felt like she couldn't breathe. Everything was dark. She didn't know what was going on. She couldn't remember anything. She tried to open her eyes, but the light was blinding them.

"Just breathe, Lilly, You'll be okay. Just breathe."

"What?"

She saw his face. A face she never thought she'd ever see. Her father's.

"It's okay. It's gonna be okay, Just breathe."

Everything was white, his face right there in front of her eyes. She couldn't see anything else and in a second, his face was gone and she was staring at a grey ceiling. Groaning, she opened them more. Where was she? She tried to sit up, but pain shot up through her from her stomach, so she lay back down.

"Lilly?"

She heard a voice. She couldn't turn her head but when a figure leaned over her, she saw that it was Aunt Peyton. "Aunt Peyton? What's going on?" She mumbled. "Where am I? Why can't I move?"

Peyton started tearing up. "Oh, Lilly." She said in that concerned, motherly voice of hers. "It's gonna be okay. Carter is gone. He can't hurt you anymore. I promise."

Everything came back to her, then. The screaming, the hitting, the pain. Realization hit her like a bus. Oh, god. What had happened? The last thing she remembered was Carter's foot going into her chest. She groaned. "Where am I?"

"You're at the hospital, Lil. Jamie and Brooke, figured it out, and called us. It was about an hour after you sent that text to Jamie. When they found you, you were unconscious and bleeding a lot. Carter was just sitting there drinking a beer." She spat the last part out bitterly. "Here." She reached behind Lilly's bed and hit some kind of button that Lilly couldn't see and the bed started moving up, so Lilly could see more clearly.

"Oh." Lilly said. "Where is everyone? What happened to Carter?"

"Well, Karen and Lucas are getting a cup of coffee. Haley and Nathan will be here in awhile. They had to go home and regroup with all the kids."

"What about Jamie?"

Peyton sighed, looking down at her hands. "He hasn't come yet. I think he's afraid of what he'll see."

"And Carter?"

Peyton laughed bitterly. "That bastard is in jail, Lil. With a broken nose, two broken ribs, a broken arm, two black eyes and a thousand bruises." Peyton continued when Lilly gave her a weird look. "Your brother and your Uncle Nathan had a little fun with him while they waited for the police."

Lilly smiled, not sure of what else to say.

"Lilly?" Peyton whispered. "Can I ask you a question?"

Lilly knew what question she was going to ask, but nodded anyways.

"Why didn't you tell us?"

She shrugged, looking away. "I don't know. I was so far in, I…I didn't know what to do. I was so afraid of what he might do if he learned I told somebody, I just…"

Peyton nodded, kissing Lilly's forehead. "I'm going to get Karen and Lucas and the doctor. Okay?"

Peyton disappeared and Lilly was left alone. Lilly relaxed a little, letting out a breath she didn't realized she had been holding. Relief washed over her, and she smiled. Everything was going to be okay.

"Lilly?" She heard her mother's frantic voice after a moment alone.

Lilly smiled, sheepishly, somewhat surprised at how much her mother was crying. "Hi, Mom."

Karen rushed over, and wrapped her arms around Lilly, apologizing whenever she hit a bruise. "Oh, Lilly, I'm so sorry."

"It's not your fault, Mom."

"I should've noticed something. All those long sleeve shirts, I should've noticed…" Karen said, pulling back. She studied her daughter, and Lilly smiled at her.

"It's okay."

"You're right. Because it's over now. Nothing will happen again." Karen smiled and stepped back. "Now, Lucas wants to talk to you. I'll be back to check on you again, okay?"

She left, and Lucas took her spot. For a moment, Lilly felt embarrassed. She felt weird with him seeing her like this, all bruised and in a hospital. She looked down at herself, feeling very weird for feeling weird. Lilly wasn't sure what he was going to say, or do, but when he wrapped his arms around her in a protective hug, she just leaned into him and closed her eyes, letting herself feel protected.

"I'm so sorry, Lil." He said, pulling back.

Lilly noticed his scratched up hands when he did and laughed slightly to herself. "It's not your fault. I…I just got in too far over my head, and I didn't know how to get out."

He nodded. "You won't have to worry about that bastard anymore. He's in jail. We won't let him hurt you again."

___

The doctor came in next, informing Karen and Lucas and her of everything. Lilly had two broken ribs, a sprained wrist, bruises all over that made it difficult for her to move. She had stitches on her forehead, and on her leg. Lilly learned that she had been sleeping for a day and half now, thanks to stress. Dr. Giordano told her she could leave after they ran a couple tests, and she would be fine.

After the doctor came, everyone came and told her how sorry they were. Truth be told, she could've shot them for saying they were sorry. The phrase was overrated, and Lilly was tired of it. It wasn't their fault, and Lilly felt terrible for making them feel that way. As it was, she rarely got a minute alone. Somebody was always with her. Brooke had yelled at her for not telling somebody, but had also cried and given her a hug, Nathan and Haley came in with food that Aunt Haley had cooked and Nathan told her about how much he had done to Carter. The only person that didn't come see her, was Jamie.

That scared her. They had always been able to go to each other, well they used to. She was disappointed in him, no doubt. She knew he would be mad at her for not telling him, but she thought he would have come through, and helped her. She needed him. She needed her best friend.

Lilly went home a couple hours later. Lucas and Karen wouldn't leave her alone, asking her what she needed, trying to make her comfortable with all the pillows. The doctor had told her to take it very easy for the first couple of days, telling her to try not to move as much. Lilly, being as independent as she is, did not like this very much.

"Okay," Karen said after Lilly was all settled in the couch with the TV remote in her hand. "Lucas is gonna stay with you while I go to the bookstore real quick and run some errands. Then, when he goes to his practice and I go to my dentist appointment, Brooke is gonna come over. Then I should be home. Okay?"

Lilly nodded. Part of her wanted to tell her mom she did not need a babysitter, but the bigger part of her didn't want to be left alone. Karen left and Lucas came back from the kitchen with two cokes, sitting next to her and handing her one.

"So," Lucas started, "What movie are we watching?"

Lilly looked at the ones laying in front of her. She smiled, picking up her favorite. Lucas groaned.

"No, I am not watching Aladdin." He replied, picking up Remember The Titans. "What about this one?"

Lilly shook her head. "No. I've seen that too many times. Come on, I'm the injured one!"

He whined a little, but gave in eventually and put in her favorite movie. They spent the entire time bickering about how good the movie was. She insisted it was classic, he said it was old and girlie.

They were in the middle of 'A Whole New World' when Lilly realized she was actually having fun. With her brother. Her previous enemy. She wondered when this had happened. She wasn't used to the feeling.

___

Brooke came over after Lucas, carrying make-up, candy-chocolate of course, more chick flicks, and a nail kit. Lucas mumbled something about picking someone better to babysit as he walked out.

"Okay, princess, which movie first?" Brooke asked.

"Baby Mama."

"Oh, good one." Brooke put the movie in the DVD player, and went back to doing Lilly's nails. "You know, at least you get out of school for a couple of days and you get all pampered and everything."

"Yeah," Lilly looked down. "When You and Jamie…uh found out, what did Jamie say? Did he say he was mad at me?"

"I was too busy worrying about you when he said something to notice, to be honest. He didn't say he was mad at you, but, I don't know. After we called Lucas and jumped in the car with Nathan and Haley while Julian stayed with the kids, he didn't say much. Nobody did. Lucas and Peyton arrived at the beach the same time that we did and Nathan and Luke took off sprinting." She chuckled. "You should've seen them, Lil. We all saw you lying there with all that blood and Lucas and Nate took one look at Carter and beat the shit out of him. Jamie wanted to do something, but Haley held him back as I called the police and Peyton tried to see if you were still alive. We couldn't tell. There was so much blood, and you were unconscious. It scared us."

"I wanted to tell somebody. I just…didn't know how."

"When did he first hit you? If you don't mind me asking."

"The night I found out about Dad dying. I went to his apartment, and I heard all this yelling and things being thrown. When I asked him about it, he freaked out. We kind of got into an argument and he backhanded me. I was in so much shock, I just thought it wouldn't happen again. And then it did. And I didn't know what to do."

Brooke sighed. "The next time I tell you to find a boyfriend, I'm going to pick him out myself."

_____

Finally! A happy chapter! :] Jamie and Lilly will talk in the next chapter, plus more Lucas/Lilly reunion fluff, and more Brooke as I have become aware that everyone loves Brooke and Lilly. Plus, I'm gonna throw in some Peyton and Lilly time, too. I think both Brooke and Peyton can help Lilly 'cause they were attacked, too. Anywho, Ideas are always welcome and I love reviews!


	10. Talk

Hey guys! Thank you so much, again. You guys are amazing to say the least.

Disclaimer: I don't own One Tree Hill.

______

Lilly sat down next to Peyton on the couch in Clothes Over Bro's, as Brooke brought out more clothes for her to try on. Lilly was tired, having tried on clothes all morning. Brooke was going nuts, picking out the outfit Lilly would wear to Carter's arraignment the next day. Lilly had been putting on a brave face for the court date but the truth was, Lilly was scared shitless. She didn't know how tomorrow was going to go, what Carter would do when he saw her, she knew nothing.

"So," Peyton turned to Lilly as Brooke walked to the back of the store for more clothes. "How are you holding up?"

Lilly nodded. "I'm okay. Better, now."

Peyton gave her a pointed look. "You don't always have to be so strong, you know, Lil. I've been there. Sometimes it's okay to be scared."

Lilly opened her mouth to say something but Brooke walked back in and dragged Lilly back to the fitting rooms.

______

This last week had been the longest, hardest week of Lilly Scott's life. She had barely slept, having a fear that if she closed her eyes she would wake up from the dream she was in and Carter would still be beating her. So, she stayed up, taking photographs of random things around her house. The old her would've snuck out of the house, but the new her, the Lilly that was still haunted by that creepy criminal's face wasn't so brave. Ever since she had gotten out of the hospital, she had been pushing back the issues she should have dealt with, and it was easy since she was never alone. However, today was Carter's arraignment. And so, started the process of his trial, and sentencing and so forth. The prosecutor told Karen it wouldn't take very long. Carter would most likely plea guilty, and if he didn't then Lilly was there to testify against him. Only thing was, Lilly wasn't so sure she was strong enough to step on the stand, and send somebody to jail. She hadn't told anyone this, not sure _what_ to tell them.

Actually, the truth was that Lilly was waiting. She was waiting for her best friend to talk to her. Jamie had yet to come see her or contact her in any way. Lilly desperately wanted to just go over and yell at him, but something stopped her. She knew he would come to her when he was ready. She knew he was mad but she also knew he still considered her his best friend.

Brooke had picked out an outfit for Lilly to wear today, saying she had to look better than ever before. Lilly just smiled and nodded and let Brooke do her thing, knowing Brooke would feel helpful. Brooke, Karen, Lucas and Peyton would all be at the trial with her today. She was so grateful for all of them. Never did she expect to actually be grateful for Lucas, but here she was. Things had turned around, and Lilly found herself glad. Through all of this, she learned that life was too short to be enemies with your family.

____

He just looked at her. Carter looked at her, blinked, and turned around. That was it. Lilly guessed she shouldn't have been surprised, but, as she sat down next to Lucas and Peyton, Karen and Booke sitting on the other side of her, that's exactly what Lilly was-surprised. She didn't really know what she had expected, but she had hoped that he would have felt the least bit remorse.

Lucas leaned over to her, whispering, "Don't worry about him. He's going to get what he deserves."

Lilly nodded and looked back over to where he was sitting next to his lawyer. He was dressed in a suit and Lilly couldn't help but notice the bruises all over his face. Lilly also couldn't help but smile. Lucas was right; Carter was going to get what was coming to him.

___

Luckily, Lilly wouldn't have to stand in front of the jury and Carter and testify against him; he had plead guilty. Lilly was relieved. Well, she thought she was relieved. As she sat down on her bed, she wasn't so sure. At first, she was afraid of what Carter would do had she actually testified against him. She was afraid he would find a way to hurt her. Nevertheless, after being in the court room and seeing how calm he was, she wanted to. She wanted to stand in front of the jury and send him to hell.

Lilly sighed. Everyone was coming to dinner. But right now, everyone was at their house getting their families ready. Karen was in the kitchen cooking, and for the first time since she got out of the hospital, Lilly was alone. She wasn't sure why this was weird for her. She was Lilly Scott. She was strong.

Actually, scratch that. She wasn't strong, and as she pulled her knees to her chest and leaned her head down as she sobbed, she felt weaker than ever.

"Lilly?" Brooke whispered as she walked into the teenagers' room. After Seeing Lilly curled up on the bed crying, Brooke rushed over and gathered the young girl in her arms. "Oh, Lilly. It's okay."

Lilly didn't say anything just lay there in her Aunt's arms. She let herself be comforted, leaning into her embrace. She wasn't sure how long they stayed like that, but when Brooke pulled back all of Lilly's make-up had been smudged off.

"The second year that my store was open, I was attacked. I was closing the store when somebody jumped out of nowhere and attacked me." Brooke said as she pulled back, looking Lilly in the eye. "I had bruises all over my face, black eyes, the whole deal. I told everyone I fell down the stairs. Lilly, you don't always have to be so strong. We are all here for you. When I was attacked, I didn't tell anyone for a long time, so I didn't have anyone to talk to. You do. You have us. Just, remember that, okay?"

Lilly nodded, sniffling. "When the attorney told me I might have to testify against him, I didn't want to. I was afraid of what he would do. But, after seeing him today," Lilly scoffed, shaking her head. "I want to send him to jail. I want to stand in front of the jury and send him to jail."

"He's going to jail, sweetie. I promise. We won't let him get away with this." Brooke pushed Lillys hair out of her face.

There was a knock at the door, and Lilly and Brooke turned to see Jamie leaning against the doorway. Brooke stood up, squeezing Lillys shoulder as she did so. "I'll give you two a minute." She smiled at Jamie as she walked out of the room.

Jamie straightened, putting his hands in his pockets and looking down. "so…"

Lilly snorted, wiping the tears out of her eyes. "So? That's all you have to say?"

"What do you want me to say, Lil?"

Lilly stood up and turned around, glaring at him. "I want you to say you're sorry for not coming to see me. I was so scared; I needed my best friend! Everyone else came to see me when I was in the hospital. Everyone except my best friend. I needed you!"

"I know," Jamie said. "I'm sorry, I just…" He sat down on her bed, running his hands through his hair. "When Brooke and I figured it out, Dad, her and I all raced down to the beach after we called Uncle Luke, and there he was, just sitting there. You were unconscious, and there was so much blood. I was scared, Lil, I was so scared. And then they took you to the hospital, and I was there, for awhile. You were still asleep, and the more I thought of it, the more angry I got. I was so mad at you for not telling me, for doing this to yourself, that I just, I couldn't be there. I was so mad. I was mad at Carter, at you, and then I was mad at myself for not being there when you needed me. I felt so stupid for not noticing it before. I knew something was wrong, I knew something just wasn't right, but I ignored it. For some odd reason, I thought you were happy with him so I ignored it. And then Brooke was talking to me, and I felt so guilty, Lil. It was just easier to blame you and be mad at you rather than admitting that it was my fault."

Lilly sat down next to him, and lay her head down on his shoulder. "It wasn't your fault. I was mine, you were right. I just, I was so far in, that I didn't know how to get out. When he called me to go to the beach, I knew something was wrong. I knew something bad was going to happen, and I then I got there and I saw him and I knew it had to stop. But, I also knew I couldn't stop him myself. I was hoping you would figure it out when I texted you." Lilly stopped, chuckling, "So, Luke and Your dad beat the shit out of him, huh?"

Jamie grinned up at her. "I got a video of it on my phone. Want to see?"

Lilly grinned back, reaching for his phone. "Hell yes!"

_________________

:] The next chapter is going to be the last. It will probably be short, but for this story, it will be the last. I'm going to make this into a series, though. My next story will be a look at Lucas and Peyton's life. I don't know where I'll take it yet, so ideas would be very much appreciated. After that, I'll do Haley and Nathan, and then Brooke and Julian.

As always, tell me what you think!


	11. Hope

Hey guys! Alright, this is it! Last one! Thank you so much for your reviews and your support. Love you!

Oh, and just a note, pay attention to what Lilly calls Lucas.

:]

Disclaimer: I don't own One Tree Hill.

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It was over. Officially. The sentencing was over, everything. Carter would be in jail for a good amount of time, and Lilly was free of him. To say she was happy would be an understatement. She and Jamie were back to normal, and her bruises were starting to disappear. She had been able to move for awhile now, the doctor giving her the okay. It had been two weeks since she woke up in the hospital. Normal seemed like it was near.

She was in her room looking at a picture she had taken when realization hit her. She never sent in her application for the scholarship to Rhode Island School of Design. She sat down on her bed. She needed that scholarship. How was she going to pay for school without it?

_____

Karen was in the kitchen making dinner when Lilly walked out of her room. She was making Lilly's favorite-Macaroni & Cheese. Lilly sat down at the table. "Hey, Mom."

"Hey sweetie. How are you feeling?"

Lilly shrugged. "I…uh missed the deadline for a scholarship for The Rhode Island School of Design."

"Oh, honey, I'm sorry. Maybe you can talk to the school officials, explain to them what happened-"

Lilly cut her off by shaking her head. "I don't think that'll work, Mom."

"Lilly, I want to tell you something." Karen sat down next to her daughter and placed a hand on her knee. "You will be just fine. Andy and I won't let your dreams just fade away. Okay? Everything will work out in the end. Look, I just…I want you to know how proud I am of you. I should've seen what was going on, I should've taken more interest in your life, but I didn't. But you are so strong, and you came out and you still smile like there's no tomorrow. I'm so proud of you for that. I love you, and for the record, I never wanted you to be like Lucas."'

Lilly smiled and hugged her mother.

__________

"Luke?!" Lilly called, walking into his house and closing the door behind herself. She heard him call back and walked to his bedroom where he was sitting at his desk, typing on his computer. Well, he wasn't actually typing anything. He was just staring at the screen.

"Hey you." He said when he saw her. He stood up and gave her a hug, and they sat down on his bed. "Shouldn't you be at school?"

She shrugged. "What senior doesn't skip just one day?"

"That's true, I guess. What's going on?"

"I just…" Lilly laughed, all of a sudden feeling slightly embarrassed. "I wanted to say thanks, for being there for me."

"Oh, of course, Lil. I wouldn't have it any other way. I'm just glad I got to beat the shit out of him before he was hauled off to jail. I'm sorry I didn't catch on before."

"It's not your fault. I knew I should've ended it the first time. I just…I wished I was wrong about him, you know? And then when it happened again, I didn't know what to do."

"Well, it's over now, that's for sure." Lucas wrapped an arm around her.

____

It was two weeks later when Lilly got the best news of her life. She was at home, watching TV when she was supposed to be doing homework. The doorbell rang and she stood up and opened the door. She was surprised to see Mitch standing there awkwardly.

"Um, hi Mitch." She said, looking from side to side. "What are you doing here?"

"I um, first, I wanted to say I'm sorry for what happened to you. That sucks, and you didn't deserve it at all."

"Oh," Lilly said a bit surprised. "Thanks, but Mitch, I'm really in no position to start anything…"

"Oh!" He stopped her with his hand. "No, that's not why I'm here. Not that that's totally out of…Nevermind." He took a deep breath and handed her an envelope that had already been open. "I knew you were going for one of the scholarships that RISD hands out, and when I heard about what happened, and I figured you wouldn't be able to send in the application. So I filled one out for you. And you got it. Congratulations!"

Lilly stared at him in disbelief. He sent her application in? Wow. Lilly smiled, actually grinned. She opened the envelope and read the letter. And for the first time in two months, hope filled Lilly's heart.

____

Ta-da! What do you think of Mitch? Let me know! You'll be able to keep up with him and Lilly and everyone else in my next story. I have no idea what it will be called yet, so just look out for it! I know I posted this really way soon, but, to be honest, I was ready for this to be finished. Lilly has grown to the maturity level she needs to and my work at creating a story is complete. :] Thanks again, and don't forget to review!


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